The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Mysterious

  • Tears as mysterious fire guts shops in Aba

    Tears as mysterious fire guts shops in Aba

    Traders and sympathizers at New Market in Aba, Abia State Line 49, Lagos zone, could not hold back tears as a mysterious fire gutted 14 shops and destroyed goods worth millions of naira.

    Our correspondent, who visited the scene of the inferno on Friday, reports that the traders claimed that they couldn’t save a pin from the inferno, which started when they had all gone home after their day’s business on Thursday.

    While the affected traders were seen picking and packing out charred goods from their shops, others who could not hold back emotions were seen being consoled by sympathisers at the scene.

    Some of the traders, who spoke anonymously, demanded that the security men on duty should be questioned. This is as some of them alleged that the inferno was the handiwork of disgruntled elements.

    They wondered how the area that doesn’t have electricity supply over decades or have anyone using naked fire got burnt over the night. They also queried the inability of the security men on duty in the area to raised the alarm when they spotted an unusual fire or smoke in a place that doesn’t sell any inflammable material.

    One of the traders, Mr. Ifeanyi Ogbonna, who summoned courage to speak to our reporter at the scene, said that he lost about N2.5m, while a neighbour who had a provision shop said he lost goods worth about N8m.

    According to him, men of the Abia State Fire Service came to attend to the fire, but left when they ran out of water.

    He said that the fire was later quenched by sympathisers who used water from a nearby borehole operator to prevent the fire from engulfing other shops in the zone.

    He appealed to the governor of the state, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu, and other well-meaning Nigerians to come to their aid as they cannot bear the pain and weight of the loss alone.

  • 12 escape ‘mysterious’ death in Ondo community

    Twelve persons at the weekend escaped death by inhaling dangerous gases from a generator at Igbokoda, headquarters of Ilaje Local Government Area of Ondo State.

    Though the remote cause of the incident could not be ascertained at press time, it was learnt that the victims were in good health before allegedly inhaling a gas from a chemical used in killing mosquitoes.

    Another source said the victims, comprising six men and six women, were said to have inhaled generator fumes in a room.

    They were said to be resting in a building on Okoga Street while mourning one of their relatives by observing a compulsory vigil with his widow, according to a tradition in the coastal community.

    The development was said to have begun around 11.30 p.m when one of the deceased’s relatives, Orimisan Ayedara, was also observing the rites.

    He was said to have suddenly noticed that everybody in the house had become unconscious.

    The man reportedly raised the alarm and ran to a nearby church where a night vigil was ongoing.

    The pastor of the church, Sola Omonojo, with the support of some prayer warriors, reportedly stormed the scene for spiritual assistance.

    It was learnt that as the pastor was reviving some of the victims, two of the church members who accompanied him to the scene, suddenly slumped.

    Sources said the pastor and other sympathisers carried the victims and contacted some policemen at Igbokoda Police Station.

    After marathon prayers, the victims were said to have regained consciousness.

    One of the church members said a vigil was ongoing when somebody rushed in and informed members about the development.

    He said: “Shortly after we received the message, the pastor and other church members went to the home, close to the church, to render assistance to the victims. On getting to the house, 12 persons were met unconscious and we started praying for them.”

    The church member said as the prayers were going on, two church members slumped and were rushed to the church to be revived.

    A resident, Igbekele Aiyelanwa, described the incident as a spiritual attack.

    He recalled that a similar incident had occurred in the same house few years ago in which he claimed five persons died.

    Aiyelanwa said he was surprised when two members of the congregation suddenly became unconscious while trying to revive the victims.

    He said the revival of the victims before the incident was an act of God.

    A victim, Mrs. Omolara Ojulari, described the situation as divine.

    She recalled that she was in good condition when she joined the widow for the ritual vigil, as part of the tradition in the area.

    Ojulari said she suddenly became unconscious and slumped, thanking God for bringing her back to life.

  • This mysterious world

    Preamble

    What can we say of a man who fixes his eyes on the sun but does not see it? Instead, he sees a chorus of flaming seraphim announcing a paroxysm of despair.

    That is the parable of the country called Nigeria. Like the Israelites of yore, most Nigerians have become unbelievable gypsies wandering aimlessly in the wilderness of forlornness and wallowing helplessly in abject poverty even in the midst of abundance.

    Our world is mysterious. And the more efforts made to demystify it the more complex it becomes. Not even humanity’s greatest footprint (science and technology) has succeeded in demystifying the phenomenal web we call “the world”.

    In retrospect

    A few years ago, while yours sincerely was browsing through the internet, I fortuitously stumbled on a strange news report that was nearer to fiction than to reality, yet it was real. In the report, far away in Thailand, a young man of about 28 years of age was reported missing for some days by his relatives. By the time his dead body was eventually found somewhere in a thick forest, journalists in that country were bracing up for writing an exclusive

    Story.

    First mystery scene

    Incredibly, bruises of snake bite were found all over the young man’s body. And, surprisingly also, a monstrous python was found lying lifelessly by his side. On examining the python, the police discovered human bites all over its body. There and then, it was concluded that perhaps a furious duel had taken place between a man hunter and a reptile which led to mutual death. But the story did not end there.

    Second mystery scene

    The young man’s body was also found to be pants down with a dangling condom firmly fixed to his manhood. This unbelievable scene suggested the possibility of an attempted bestial sex that could be linked to a ritual act. Could the young man have attempted to rape the python? That was a mysterious question begging for a mysterious answer.

    Personal reflection

    On a personal reflection, yours sincerely arrived at a guess that the young man might have lured a beautiful damsel into a hideout perhaps for an illicit sexual orgy. But on getting to the point of action, the damsel decided to show her true self by turning into a python, and a duel ensued. Or why would a young man wearing condom be found half naked in such a circumstance with such a brutal reptile? This strange story quickly reminded me of an article I once wrote in this column which was entitled “THE WORLD OF JINN”.

    Linkage

    Linking that article to the episode in Thailand, just relayed above, may provide a possible clue to the mystery surrounding the death of a man and a python almost arm in arm. The similitude of the above episode is like that of Nigeria and her epidemy of corruption. I therefore decided to recall that article here today as an illustration of the linkage between the two articles if only to enable those who did not read the earlier article when it was first published. Please read on:

     The world of Jinn

    “…The world of Jinn is, to man, an imaginary world entirely wrapped in mystery. The details of how man and Jinn came to share the planet called the earth are known only to Allah. But who actually, are the Jinn? Jinn are living beings created by Allah from the flames of fire and given free will. They live on earth in a world parallel to that of man. But they are invisible to human eyes in their natural form. The Arabic word “Jinn” is from the verb “Jannah” which means to hide. Some other words from the same verb root are given names such as Janin and Janan meaning embryo and heart respectively to reflect their hidden nature.

    Categories of Jinn

    Jinn, like human beings, are as much in genders as in races and tribes. Their activities are elicited by their various cultures and traditions. Some of them are called fairy. Some are called demons and some are called devils depending on their roles in the lives of human beings. In Islam, the unbelievers among Jinn are called Shaytan (Satan) the plural of which is Shayatin and their paramount king is called Iblis. We first heard of Iblis in some Qur’anic verses revealed to Prophet Muhammad (SAW) by Allah in the city of Madinah.

    Analysis

    According to the contents of those verses, shortly after the creation of Adam, Allah (SWT) asked the Angels (with Iblis in their midst), to prostrate to him (Adam). They all did except Iblis who bluntly refused. And, when asked why he refused to obey the commandment of Allah, he said he (Iblis), having been created from the flame of fire was superior to whatever was created from the earth. That was the beginning of hostility between man and Jinn as declared by Iblis on the premise of envy. Noting this hostility, Allah warned Adam and Hawau (Eve) to steer clear of the antics of Iblis and his disciples in order not to be lured into perdition. But with cunning and intrigue, Iblis succeeded in demoting the first human couple. The rest is history.

    Types of Jinn

    Jinn are of various heights, sizes and colours just like humans. They also have different languages and cultures depending on the race or tribe to which they belong. But one unique feature with which they are commonly endowed and, which man lacks, is the ability to transform into anything they want at will.

    Jinn’s earlier life

    Jinn are believed to have lived on earth for millions of years before the creation of man.

    It was from the experience of their lawlessness and bloody existence while they held sway on earth that the Angels got the idea which informed their initial objection to the creation of man. Without such experience the Angels would not have attempted to advise Allah “not to put on earth again those who would vandalize it and shed blood therein”. Q. 2, Verse 31.

    Environments of the Jinn

    Jinn are everywhere in the world today. They are in every home, community, country and continent. The Jinn live in trees, mountains, rivers as well as in people’s homes and in people’s hearts and wombs. It is possible to marry jinn as a wife or as a husband without knowing. This may sound odd but the truth is that most people keep jinn in their homes even in the name of children. There are Jinn in schools, in the markets, in the industries, in the offices, as well as in the Mosques and Churches. They share the lives of humans anywhere, everywhere.

    The Jinn in human environment

    The constant human tampering with the ecosystem has compelled the Jinn to change their style of living. Hitherto, they lived exclusively in places like forests, mountains, rivers, inside trees and in certain animals. But as towns and cities emerge from the ravages of the forests and mountains the Jinn take to human homes as abodes thereby sharing man’s immediate environment in all aspects. Today, Jinn do not only live in human houses, farms and offices, they also live inside their hearts, brains and blood.

    Colonisation

    If there is anything called colonization in the real sense, it is the occupation of human space and time by the Jinn. That human marriages which were once sacred do not last any longer and societal harmony, once taken for granted, has become a luxury are a sign of Jinn’s demonic grip on earth.

    Human Jinn

    Most people in authority who we call Presidents, Prime Ministers, Kings, Queens, Governors, Ministers Legislators and Judges have significant traits of Jinn which have transformed into humans. Politicians are particularly fitting very accurately into a Hadith of Prophet Muhammad (SAW) which described hypocrites as persons who lie with relish while speaking and renege on promises and betray trust.

     

    Why are Jinn so called?

    The word Jinn is originally Arabic. And in In Arabic language, a person is said to be demonized (majnun) when his/her conduct is devoid of human feeling. To be demonized is to act deliriously especially where human touch is expected to take the front burner. It is not a surprise, therefore, that some people in authority reflect some traits of lunacy or that of megalomania in their bid to display power. Such people are, no doubt, from the yoke of Jinn. However, Jinn, as special creatures, do not represent all that is bad. There are good ones among them. Some of them are even more pious than human beings. In Islam, the good Jinn are said to be the disciples of Ifrit.

    Jinn in the Qur’an

    In the Qur’an, Jinn are mentioned about 35 times in relation to their activities and good or bad nature. A whole chapter of the Qur’an (chapter 72) is dedicated to the Jinn especially the good ones among them. It is about this category of Jinn that Allah revealed to Prophet Muhammad (SAW) thus: “Say it is revealed to me that a group of Jinn listened to Allah’s revelations and said: “We have heard a wonderful revelation (The Qur’an) giving guidance to the right path. We believe in it and shall henceforth serve none besides (Allah) our Lord. Exalted is His glory. He has taken no wife neither has He begotten any child. The ignorant ones amongst us have uttered wanton falsehood against Allah even though no man or Jinn is supposed to say what is untrue of Him…” Q.72, Verses 1-7.

    Explanation

    Just as good people are scarce so are good Jinn. The latter associate only with good people and relate to them as comrades in faith. In the same vein, the evil Jinn relate to evil people in the spirit of give and take. No evil Jinn can be so friendly with any human being as not to demand 10 advantages in return for only one he has offered. Men who cultivate friendship with Jinn for the purpose of getting rich quick usually and invariably pay dearly for such. When you hear of mysterious death of a wife or that of a husband or even that of a child, watch out, a Jinn is at work somewhere around. Such Jinn are not known for serving man for free.

    Rivalry

    The Jinn see humans as permanent rivals who must be dealt with for displacing them on earth. And their active way of dealing with human beings is to offer carrot which they know that evil men will not reject. To them, carrot is not a free offer. It must be followed by stick. It is not by accident that children are born these days with two heads, four legs and at times without faces.

    The workings of the Jinn

    The workings of Jinn are more effective in the dead nights or in the day when the sun is at its peak. Pregnant women who wander about at these odd times are likely to have encounters with the evil Jinn. And, in such a situation, the Jinn easily supplant the foetus in them leading to the bearing of strange monsters in the name of children.

    Cohabiting with the Jinn

    While good Jinn live or mill around Mosques and cemeteries with the intention of cleansing those environments, the evil Jinn live in the toilets, refuse bins and the like. That is why Muslims are not supposed to talk inside the toilet except for emergency. And they should not stay a second longer than necessary therein. Most people do not know the danger inherent in leaving the toilet doors of their homes ajar especially when such toilets are un-kept. It is an ignorant way of providing abode for evil Jinn who fuel matrimonial crises from time to time and use reptiles and insects like spiders and wall echoes to harass the inhabitants. The situation of the world today is such that human beings are the ones living in the midst of Jinn and not vice versa.

    Jinn’s Working Instruments

    Using wealth, women and wine as fetters, Iblis seems to have conquered the world from the orient to the occident by gild-washing evils and trivializing good even as his agents are actively furthering his course on all fronts. Today, there are men everywhere but no husbands are available. Women are as numerous as the sands of the desert but only a few of them can be called wives in the Islamic or African cultural sense. Today, on the instruction of Satan, parents are scorned by their children, students treat their teachers with disdain, teachers take undue advantage of their students before letting them cross the huddles of examinations. Doctors and nurses who were once seen as good Samaritans are now the merchants of death and sellers of foetus and human parts. People who are designated judges are the custodians and incubators of injustice. People trusted with our treasury are the thievs looting the same treasury with impunity.  Religious sanctuaries have been turned into satanic shrines where men and women are duped or satanically hypnotized daily. Those we once venerated as clergy have audaciously become Lucifer reincarnates. Fathers impregnate their daughters. Mothers seduce their sons into abominable sex even as gays are consecrated as Bishops.

    Allies of the Jinn

    All the abominations against which we were warned in the Qur’an and the Bible have now been turned into ‘profitable’ trades and professions. And the yardstick for measuring which crime should be punished and which should not is the social status of the criminal. If, for instance, you are not a legislator, a minister, a Governor or a chief executive of a bank or a politician of note, do not pilfer. If you do and are caught, you will liable to the full wrath of the law. And on the other hand, you can only be said to have embezzled and not stolen if you are one of those wielding power in the country. In other words, embezzlement is for the upper class while theft is for the pedestrian masses. And the one deserves official forgiveness while the other must be forced to pass through the whole length of law process. The law of the land has no meaning to the satanic forces governing the country. Once you belong to the right cult you are above the law. As a result of this, Nigeria, a country of natural boom is now a nation of satanic doom.

    The big question

    Who will rescue this land from the scourge of demons? Prophet Muhammad (SAW) had proffered solution to all these evil forces when he asked the Muslims to listen to the words of Allah by reading the Qur’an and speak with Him (Allah) by prostrating to Him in prayer. Those are two things that the evil Jinn do not want to see or hear of. They flee from where the Qur’an is constantly recited and from where human beings often prostrate to Allah. Who says evil Jinn do not have strong Dallis in Nigeria?

  • Mysterious $1 billion

    Mysterious $1 billion

    In the light of uproar over alleged missing $20 billion, all governors failed the Nigerian people for not asking the Jonathan administration to explain how $1 billion appeared in our federation account

    For the body of Nigerian governors, the news of recent payment of $1 billion into the excess crude account (ECA) by the federal government must have come both as shock and surprise.

    Shock because the “windfall” came in spite of the industrial scale oil theft said to have gone on unabated in the last nine months. And, if we may add, the shady accounting practices that have left the federation account at the mercy of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation NNPC).

    Surprise because the payment came days before the meeting of the National Economic Council (NEC) – a body, which by statute is supposed to meet monthly but which last met nine months ago. The body had Vice President Namadi Sambo as chairman with the governors and other members of the President’s economic team as members.

    For state governments that have borne the brunt of the NNPC’s, and by extension, the President Jonathan’s federal government’s irresponsible book-keeping of the nation’s oil revenue account, it is rather unfortunate that the governors opted to gloss over the question of how the federal government came by the $1 billion it paid into the ECA, or even the more fundamental question of how the federal pool could have shrunk by more than 20 percent over the last few months when the nation is not officially at war, as soon as the money came into their account.

    But even more worrisome is that they failed to see the latest gambit for what it is: a well-timed manoeuvre to stave off further questions on the $20 billion which the NNPC is accused of failing to remit into the federation account.

    The governors not only let the citizens down; they are by their act of indifference just as complicit in abetting the crime of impunity. While it seems understandable that the states, long cash-starved would latch on to anything to keep governance in their domains going, we certainly do not consider it right that they would so soon ignore the fundamental issues involved in the management of the oil proceeds – at least not with the latest rounds of questions about sleaze in the oil sector still hanging.

    The point bears reiteration: it is hard to imagine the entire 36 state governors suddenly becoming tongue-tied only because there is now a prospect of enhanced revenue. Many of the governors are even reported as wishing that they take whatever the federal government deems fit to give them so that they can move on! That cannot be right.

    For how long will state governments be content with living on the federal government charity? Is this latest cynical act not akin to throwing a piece of bone to a hungry dog?

    How can a governor ever imagine that the succour from the sudden improvement in monthly revenue would obviate the fundamental demand for openness and transparency from the federal government and the NNPC? Why should a state governor worth his salt not be interested in the volume of crude pumped, and the price it is sold? What is so secretive in all of these that the federal government cannot make them public to every Nigerian? Isn’t democracy about getting the government to respond to well-meaning enquiries from the governed? And why should Nigerians settle for less?

    Now, the point remains that between last week’s payment and the time when the Governor Rotimi Amaechi-led Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) accused the federal government of deliberately stalling the NEC meeting to prevent a discussion of the issues surrounding the alleged missing $20bn, nothing has changed. For sure, the federal government has neither shown willingness to toe the path of transparency in the management of accruals into the distributable pool, nor the NNPC more disposed to come clean on what it did with the $20 billion. Rather, both the federal government and the governors have gone ahead to forge an unholy alliance on another front with their new resolve to hive off subsidy on fuel in their bid to shore up their dwindling revenues.

    Contrary to what some state governors are reported to have feared, we do not see anything adversarial in the states demanding from the federal government the source of the payment. Aside being their right, the answers, if given, may in fact help resolve some of the lingering mysteries dogging the oil industry.

    The path of honour for the governors would have been to temporarily hold off receiving the money until full accounting of its source. By not doing that, the governors of whatever stripe fell into the same moral squalor of which they have accused the president. It is sad, and it potentially compromises the search for integrity of our financial patrimony. It paralyses any call for transparency, and heaps the slur of hypocrisy on the political class.

    The point bears repeating: the federal government has an obligation to inform Nigerians about the source of the $1 billion paid into the ECA. Is it part of the $20 billion, or $12 billion, or $10.8 billion? We need to know. On their part, Nigerians must consider their abiding interest the question of the alleged missing $20 billion. Rather than faking Father Christmas with our patrimony; it is what the integrity of governance demands.

  • Woman gives birth to mysterious baby in Osun

    A woman on Saturday gave birth to a mysterious baby in Sekona community, near Ede via Osogbo, capital of Osun State. The new babywas born without a head at a mission centre.

    The police had a tough time controlling the crowd which besieged the centre to have a glimpse of the unusual baby.

    A section of the crowd initially suspected a foul play when they thought that the head of the baby was severed for ritual purposes.

    The police took the baby to a government hospital in Ede. The crowd that followed the baby to the hospi tal was later educated that it was a case of deformity after the doctor at the hospital did a thorough investigation on the baby.

    Osun State police public relations officer, Folasade Odoro said the dead baby had since been returned to the mother for burial.

  • Expectant mother, daughter, die in mysterious fire

    Expectant mother, daughter, die in mysterious fire

    A MYSTERIOUS fire, which engulfed a house in Ubachima, Awo-Omamma in Oru East Local Government Area of Imo State, yesterday killed an expectant mother and her two-year-old daughter.

    An eye witness told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Owerri, the state capital, on condition of anonymity that the cause of the fire was unknown.

    The source said the deceased, Mrs. Nkechi Amajuoyi, her husband, Benedict and their little daughter, were relaxing outside their house when the woman and the daughter decided to go to bed.

    The husband, an employee of Consolidated Breweries in Awo-Omamma, later told reporters amidst tears that he returned from work at about 8pm and decided to relax with his family on a bench outside after dinner.

    He said his family later went to bed while he decided to have more rest, but was woken up by shouts of his wife. According to him, he ran into the room where his wife and daughter slept only to find out that there was nothing he could do as the inferno had engulfed the entire house. Amajuoyi’s neigbhours alleged that because there was no power supply in the community, the woman had lit the family’s lantern and headed for their living room.

    They alleged the woman was unaware that petrol was dripping from her husband’s motorcycle parked close to the room which allegedly caught fire.

    The members of the family members were making arrangements yesterday to bury the woman and her daughter.

     

  • Mysterious as ever

    Mysterious as ever

    THE Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) is easily the most critical player in the country’s economy. The organisation produces most of the output of 2.4 million barrels of oil per day, which contributes over 80 percent of government revenue and 95 percent of the country’s foreign exchange. Given its significant and sensitive role in the generation and management of government revenues, it is shocking and unacceptable that the NNPC’s finances continue to be shrouded in mystery.

    This fact was once again underscored when the corporation’s management last Tuesday appeared before the National Assembly Joint Committee on Petroleum (Downstream), to make its budget presentation. Complaining about the vagueness of the records presented by the NNPC management, the National Assembly was rightly alarmed by an excess expenditure of N48 billion incurred by the corporation in its 2012 operations. According to its chief strategist, Dr. Tim Okon, the NNPC generated total revenue of N2.3 trillion between January and September, 2012, while expending N2.4 trillion during the period. The committee was rightly curious to know from which undisclosed reserves the NNPC drew funds to augment its expenditure during the year.

    It is obvious that any organisation run as opaquely as the NNPC is will be a fertile ground for massive corruption, which is clearly the bane of the behemoth. The outrage of members of the National Assembly at what they described as the NNPC’s unserious and contradictory budget presentation is understandable. Dr. Okon’s rationalisation that “The NNPC is a running business and it has reserves and we got money from the reserves” is shallow, unsatisfactory and unacceptable. The committee was right in demanding to know where these reserves are located, how much money they contain, the relevant account numbers, signatories to the accounts and other details. The NNPC is a public corporation. It must not continue to be run like a secret cult.

    We recall that a former Minister of Finance, Mr. Remi Babalola, had disclosed in April 2010 that the corporation was broke, following its alleged inability to pay the N450 billion it owed the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) “until the reimbursement of N1.156 trillion on fuel subsidies being owed by the Federal Ministry of Finance. At about the same time, the former Group Managing Director of the NNPC, Austen Oniwon, told a gathering of top oil and gas executives at an Oil and Gas Conference and Exhibition in Abuja that “we have to suspend remuneration. The account of the organisation is in the negative; failure is imminent unless urgent transformation is carried out”.

    A 2010 joint report by Transparency International and the Revenue Watch Institute revealed that the NNPC had the poorest transparency record out of 44 national and international companies examined. Indeed, it scored zero in the category of “organisational information disclosure”. The NNPC is of course central to the $6.8 billion fuel subsidy fraud uncovered early this year by the National Assembly. The corporation is said to owe the government $4.34 billion for subsidy violations while also owing oil traders $3.5 billion in unpaid bills. This is in sharp contrast to the Angolan state oil firm, SONANGOL, which has performed excellently, posting $3.32billion net profit for 2011, a 32 percent improvement on its performance of $2.52 billion in 2010.

    We cannot continue with a situation in which the NNPC is accountable to no one. Petroleum minister, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke’s recent assertion that “The NNPC should not be subjected to the National Assembly’s usual legislative processes and appropriation because it operates like a private corporation” is irresponsible and must be roundly rejected.